Groin Pain Syndrome Italian Consensus Conference update 2023.

Groin pain syndrome (GPS) is a controversial topic in Sports Medicine. The GPS Italian Consensus Conference on terminology, clinical evaluation and imaging assessment of groin pain in athletes was organized by the Italian Society of Arthroscopy in Milan, on 5 February 2016. In this Consensus Conference (CC) GPS etiology was divided into 11 different categories for a total of 63 pathologies.

The Effect of Bariatric Surgery on Patients with Heart Failure: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

The current study aims to evaluate the effect of bariatric metabolic surgery (BMS) on the New York Heart Association (NYHA) class and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in patients with diagnosed heart failure (HF). Fourteen related articles with 217 patients were included in the final analysis. LVEF significantly improved after BMS in patients with HF with a mean difference of 7.

The Effect of Active Stretching Training in Patients with Chronic Venous Insufficiency Monitored by Raster-Stereography.

(1) Background: Musculoskeletal disorders can be associated with advanced clinical stages of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI). The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of active stretching (AS) training on lower limb venous function and quality of life in patients affected by CVI. (2) Methods: A prospective two-armed pilot randomized controlled was conducted.

Neurodynamic Treatment Promotes Mechanical Pain Modulation in Sensory Neurons and Nerve Regeneration in Rats.

Background: Somatic nerve injuries are a rising problem leading to disability associated with neuropathic pain commonly reported as mechanical allodynia (MA) and hyperalgesia. These symptoms are strongly dependent on specific processes in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Neurodynamic treatment (NDT), consisting of selective uniaxial nerve repeated tension protocols, effectively reduces pain and disability in neuropathic pain patients even though the biological mechanisms remain poorly characterized.

Blood Vessels: The Pathway Used by Schwann Cells to Colonize Nerve Conduits.

The repair of severe nerve injuries requires an autograft or conduit to bridge the gap and avoid axon dispersion. Several conduits are used routinely, but their effectiveness is comparable to that of an autograft only for short gaps. Understanding nerve regeneration within short conduits could help improve their efficacy for longer gaps.

Efficacy and safety of hyaluronic acid (500-730kDa) Ultrasound-guided injections on painful tendinopathies: a prospective, open label, clinical study.

Background: Tendinopathies are conditions characterized by activity-induced pain, local tenderness and swelling for which a gold standard treatment is not established yet. Hyaluronic Acid (HA) is a key-molecule in several cellular activities and it is normally present in the extra-cellular matrix of tendons and ligaments. Amongst its properties, HA injections may reduce pain and determine disease-modifying effects.

A population-based study of chronic myeloid leukemia patients treated with imatinib in first line.

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) treatment is based on company-sponsored and academic trials testing different tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) as first-line therapy. These studies included patients selected according to many inclusion-exclusion criteria, particularly age and comorbidities, with specific treatment obligations. In daily clinical practice (real-life), inclusion-exclusion criteria do not exist, and the treatment outcome does not only depend on the choice of first-line TKI but also on second- and third-line TKIs.

Curcumin and Fennel Essential Oil Improve Symptoms and Quality of Life in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Background And Aims: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) patients still require effective treatment. The anti-inflammatory property of curcumin and the antispasmodic and carminative effect of fennel suggests that combination of these nutraceutical compounds would be useful in functional bowel disorders including IBS. We assessed the efficacy and tolerability of a combination of curcumin and fennel essential oil (CU-FEO) in IBS symptoms relief.

Modulation of the gut microbiota composition by rifaximin in non-constipated irritable bowel syndrome patients: a molecular approach.

Rifaximin, with its low systemic absorption, may represent a treatment of choice for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), mainly due to its ability to act on IBS pathogenesis, through the influence on gut microbiota. The aim of the present study was to assess, by biomolecular tools, the rifaximin active modulation exerted on gut microbiota of non-constipated IBS patients. Fifteen non-constipated IBS subjects were treated with 550 mg rifaximin three times a day for 14 days.

Managing chronic myeloid leukaemia in the elderly with intermittent imatinib treatment.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a non-standard, intermittent imatinib treatment in elderly patients with Philadelphia-positive chronic myeloid leukaemia and to answer the question on which dose should be used once a stable optimal response has been achieved. Seventy-six patients aged ⩾65 years in optimal and stable response with ⩾2 years of standard imatinib treatment were enrolled in a study testing a regimen of intermittent imatinib (INTERIM; 1-month on and 1-month off). With a minimum follow-up of 6 years, 16/76 patients (21%) have lost complete cytogenetic response (CCyR) and major molecular response (MMR), and 16 patients (21%) have lost MMR only.

The immunomodulatory molecule pidotimod induces the expression of the NOD-like receptor NLRP12 and attenuates TLR-induced inflammation.

Pidotimod (3-L-pyroglutamyl-L-thiaziolidine-4-carboxylic acid) (PDT) is a synthetic dipeptide with in vitro and in vivo immunomodulatory properties that is largely used for treatment and prevention of infections in paediatric and disease-prone patients. However, the effects of PDT on cellular immune responses are still poorly characterized and there is little information on the mechanism of action of this compound. It has been speculated that PDT action may be exerted through the interaction with a Pattern Recognition Receptor (PRR).

A specific Toll-like receptor profile on T lymphocytes and values of monocytes correlate with bacterial, fungal, and cytomegalovirus infections in the early period of allogeneic stem cell transplantation.

Background: Bacterial, fungal, and viral infections often affect non-relapse mortality after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT). Recovery from infections depends on a balanced integration between innate and adaptive immune responses. In this complex interplay, a key role is played by Toll-like receptors (TLRs), which are sensors of pathogen-associated molecular patterns.

For timing of HAART is less more? CD4+/CD8+ ratio and CD4+ percentage as surrogate markers for more complex immunological features.

There is disagreement on the optimal timing of HAART initiation based on absolute CD4+ T-cell count (CD4+ count). We investigated if na�ve patients with CD4+ T-cell percentage (%CD4+) <29% or CD4+/CD8+ ratio <1 display signs of immune deterioration notwithstanding CD4+ count ?500 cells/?l. We found that these patients show B-cell aberrations and an impaired control of Torque Teno Virus replication.

Long term outcome of Ph+ CML patients achieving complete cytogenetic remission with interferon based therapy moving from interferon to imatinib era.

Interferon α (IFNα) prolongs survival of CML patients achieving CCyR and potentially synergizes with TKIs. We report on the molecular status and long term outcome of 121 patients who were treated in Italy between 1986 and 2000 with IFNα based therapy and who obtained CCyR. After a median follow up of 16.

Impact of comorbidities on the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia with tyrosine-kinase inhibitors.

The median age at diagnosis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is between 60 and 65 years in most epidemiologic registries. Rather than age per se, a comprehensive evaluation of comorbidities may describe more properly the general clinical status of a patient. Tyrosine-kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have a different tolerability profile, and some adverse events (AEs) are peculiar of each drug, in particular, in presence of predisposing factors (comorbidities, concomitant medications).

Profile of toll-like receptors on peripheral blood cells in relation to acute graft-versus-host disease after allogeneic stem cell transplantation.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play a key role in the cross-talk between the innate and adaptive immune systems. Previous studies investigating associations between certain TLRs and acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) have reported contrasting results, and no studies relating aGVHD to the expression and function of all human TLRs together have been published to date. We prospectively evaluated the expression of 9 TLRs on T lymphocytes and monocytes by flow cytometry in relation to aGVHD in 34 patients.

Emergence of exhausted B cells in asymptomatic HIV-1-infected patients naïve for HAART is related to reduced immune surveillance.

Alterations of B cell subpopulations have been described up to date as characterizing advanced stage of HIV-1 infection. However, whether such defects are relevant in subjects with a preserved number of CD4⁺ T cells (>350 cells/μL) is unclear. In a cross-sectional study, we investigated if signs of B cells exhaustion and impaired viral immune surveillance are present in a cohort of 43 asymptomatic HIV-1-infected patients with preserved CD4⁺ T cell counts (>350 cells/μL) and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) untreated.

Engagement of NKp30 on Vδ1 T cells induces the production of CCL3, CCL4, and CCL5 and suppresses HIV-1 replication.

Natural cytotoxicity receptors (NCRs) were originally identified as specific natural killer cell activating receptors that, on binding to their endogenous ligands, trigger the killing of tumor cell targets. We recently described the differentiation of a novel subset of NCR(+) Vδ1 T cells characterized by a remarkably high cytolytic potential against cancer cells. Here we demonstrate that the engagement of NKp30, one of the NCRs expressed de novo on Vδ1 T cells after stimulation, triggers the production of high levels of CCL3/MIP-1α, CCL4/ MIP-1β, and CCL5/RANTES but not of CXCL12/SDF-1.

Differentiation of human peripheral blood Vδ1+ T cells expressing the natural cytotoxicity receptor NKp30 for recognition of lymphoid leukemia cells.

The success of cancer immunotherapy depends on productive tumor cell recognition by killer lymphocytes. γδ T cells are a population of innate-like lymphocytes endowed with strong, MHC-unrestricted cytotoxicity against tumor cells. This notwithstanding, we recently showed that a large proportion of human hematologic tumors is resistant to γδ peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) activated with specific agonists to the highly prevalent Vγ9Vδ2 TCR.

Dendritic cells/natural killer cross-talk: a novel target for human immunodeficiency virus type-1 protease inhibitors.

Background: HIV-1 Protease Inhibitors, namely PIs, originally designed to inhibit HIV-1 aspartic protease, can modulate the immune response by mechanisms largely unknown, and independent from their activity on viral replication. Here, we analyzed the ability of PIs to interfere with differentiation program of monocytes toward dendritic cell (DCs) lineage, a key process in the inflammatory response.

Methodology/principal Findings: Monocytes from healthy donors were isolated and induced to differentiate in vitro in the presence or absence of saquinavir, ritonavir, nelfinavir, indinavir or amprenavir (sqv, rtv, nlfv, idv, apv, respectively).

CD8+ NK cells are predominant in chimpanzees, characterized by high NCR expression and cytokine production, and preserved in chronic HIV-1 infection.

HIV-1 infection in humans results in an early and progressive NK cell dysfunction and an accumulation of an "anergic" CD56- CD16+ NK subset, which is characterised by low natural cytotoxicity receptor expression and low cytokine producing capacity. In contrast to humans, chimpanzee NK cells do not display a distinguishable CD56(bright) and CD56(dim) subset but, as shown here, could be subdivided into functionally different CD8+ and CD8- subsets. The CD8+ NK cells expressed significantly higher levels of triggering receptors including NKp46 and, upon in vitro activation, produced more IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha and CD107 than their CD8- counterparts.